Locked On Bengals - Daily Podcast On The Cincinnati Bengals - Cincinnati Bengals 2024 Depth Chart break down, plus the biggest questions the Bengals have to answer early in the season

Starting point is 00:00:00 We've got our first official Cincinnati Bengals depth chart of the regular season. Let's talk about the takeaways before we get into the biggest questions of Bengals can answer early in the season. You are Locked on Bengals, your daily Cincinnati Bengals podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. What up Bengals fans and welcome to another episode of the Locked on Bengals podcast. I'm your host, Jake Liscoe. He's your host, James Rupin. We're part of the Lockdown Podcast Network.

Starting point is 00:00:35 here on Lockdown Bengals covering your team every day on YouTube and everywhere you get your podcast. Welcome back to the everydayers and thanks for making us your first listen to all of you who do. If you're new this show, you can always subscribe on YouTube and anywhere you get your podcast to stay up to date on all things Bengals like a few weird quirks on this depth chart that we're going to start the show with today. Today's episode is brought to you by FanDuel. Now through September 22nd on FanDuel, all customers can be.

Starting point is 00:01:05 bet $5 to get three weeks of free NFL Sunday ticket from YouTube and YouTube TV. You can check it out at vandal.com to get started. We're going to start the show today with the Cincinnati Bengals' depth chart, first official depth chart of the season. And if you're watching on YouTube, you can see it pulled up as a visual aid. We're then going to get to, as I said, some of the questions of Bengals can answer early this season. Like, have they done enough on defense? And whatever's on James's mind for the biggest questions facing this team?

Starting point is 00:01:35 But on the depth chart, James, pretty much all as expected on the offensive side of the ball, except perhaps this mild surprise of seeing Drew Sample listed as tight end one, which might be a bit jarring for some people who expected Mike Gaseki to be the lead at the tight end position. And he is. It's just they're going to use Mike Giskei in this hybrid role where he's going to take snaps away from Andre Yosevash in the slot is listed as the slot receiver. He's going to be on the field a decent amount with Drew Sample. And Drew Sample is their primary in line, tight end.

Starting point is 00:02:16 That we know. And so that's what this is. Mike Gisicki could very well out snap Drew Sample on Sunday. It's probably going to be close, I would say. But that's all this is. It doesn't mean Mike is it going to play a ton. It doesn't mean Drew Sample is going to run more routes than we're used to him running. it's not that at all. It's really the

Starting point is 00:02:37 the proof that depth charts are depth charts, but not every depth chart is created equal. And so on this one, as we look, tight end two, in my mind, is past Sample and Gassiki. Those guys combined for the Bengals starting tight end. And then you look at Tanner Huntson, Erica, and Tanner McLaughlin. So that's how I view it. But yeah, I get why people would be a little thrown off. when they see Drew Sample as TE1. The one other note that I would throw in there is this is the same as the first depth start back on August 5th.

Starting point is 00:03:14 Drew Sample was listed as TE1. Mike Keseki was listed as TE2. And as expected, like you said, James, this is going to be a role that is a platoon. They have different jobs entirely. They play the same position in name only for the most part, although we saw Mike Keseki line up in line a few times in the preseason for the most part. We expect him to continue to work, not attached to the line of scrimmage, not in a three-point stance, expecting him to be more or less big wide receiver, Mike Kaseki. True Sample will continue to work in line, be a blocker, do those things, catch a few passes in the flats, maybe make a really impressive play to jump over a guy and get into the end zone.

Starting point is 00:03:56 Maybe, we'll get that again from Drew Sample this year. Probably going to see him continue to get some snaps in the backfield as well. will be interesting to see how they approach third down back this year, whether that will be one of the two starters. Running back where Zach Moss is still technically ahead of Chase Brown on the depth chart, but expecting those guys to be a pretty clean split, at least from the start of the season, until something defines itself there.

Starting point is 00:04:21 It'll be interesting to see if Drew Sample continues to get some work there, or in the splitback stuff where they put a running back in Drew Sample in the backfield beside the quarterback in certain pass protection situations. Drew sample will be all over the place a little bit more than we'll see Mike Kaseki lining up all over the place. Yeah, I think that's fair simply because Drew Sample's blocking translates. And one of the things that I think is interesting when I look at this depth chart, are we sure Tanner Hudson's going to play more than Eric Hall?

Starting point is 00:04:48 Because I'm not. Eric Hall might out snap Tanner Hudson on Sunday. And it's because he can block and they trust him to do that. And so again, you have to take this to a. certain extent with a grain of salt and that is the one that stands out the most. There aren't many other surprises. I will say when looking at the wide receivers and again, some nuance here. Let's just say Jamar Chase doesn't play. On the depth chart, Jermaine Burton is listed as the backup. And if Jamar doesn't play, Burton will be active. I'm confident in that. But Trent and Irwin

Starting point is 00:05:23 would be the one that would slide into that other outside starting spot. Or maybe it's Erwin in the slot and Andres starts outside. The point is, though, I don't think that Jermaine Burton is starting if Jamar Chase is out on Sunday. Yeah, the everydayers would know from listening to us throughout training camp that Trenton Irwin was working in that

Starting point is 00:05:43 Jamar Chase rule throughout training camp in Jammar's absence. So I agree, that's probably the next guy there. There's also this theme on Bengals' depth charts generally to put rookies as low as possible, even though it doesn't reflect real life all that often. Although if they only activate four tight ends, which I would probably expect for week one.

Starting point is 00:06:02 It wouldn't be shocking if Tanner McLaughlin is the tight end that is not active. I think that is probably representative in terms of the depth chart there. The one other note here, the one other change, actually really just the only change to any of the starters on the depth chart from that first depth chart back in August to the first depth chart of the regular season is Andre Yosevash as a starting wide receiver. Trent Nervin was previously in the top position on that depth chart. Anything else on the offensive side of the ball, James, before we move to the defense?

Starting point is 00:06:37 No, let's get to the defense where I think it's pretty darn interesting. And I'll start with Dax Hill. He wins the starting cornerback job. And DJ Turner is obviously his backup. And yet you look at this depth chart and guess who's Mike Hilton's backup is? Dax Hill. And so they're clearly confident in Dax Hill. And you could see Dax potentially moving inside if need be at times or in games if something did happen to Mike.

Starting point is 00:07:10 And that also I think does show that they are confident in D.J. outside. It gives them that flexibility with Dax. It's a little bit of a surprise to me to see Dax as the backup nickel. I don't know if that's how it will play out if that is the way that it indeed is required to play out in a game, we've seen these sub-packages with Mike Hilton going off the field, then bringing an extra safety on the field, along with the lineback going off the field, and Josh Newton getting onto the field throughout the preseason, the day John Anthony, Josh Newton, third down package where Logan Wilson is still on the field,

Starting point is 00:07:43 Jermaine Pratt goes off, and Mike Hilton's going off in certain situations. They're not kicking Dax into the slot there. They're continuing to work him outside in those packages, but obviously they feel like he has a lot of positional versatility in Dax Hill. That said, I'm a little surprised that it's not just DJ Turner maybe. Maybe that would feel like a slight. Maybe that's the thinking there. If DJ Turner was listed as a backup nickel and the backup to Dax,

Starting point is 00:08:10 I think that that is just a little surprising to see Dax listed as a backup nickel. Yeah, I think it could be as simple as they tried DJ at Nickel, too, and they feel more confident with Dax in the nickel spot, especially because DJ, I really don't think he lost. the outside cornerback job as much as Dax just kind of took it over the past couple of weeks. And so I think that there's some confidence there. And he's been an outside corner. I mean, I talk to people in the building during the offseason program like,

Starting point is 00:08:41 oh, well, could DJ be a nickel? Long term, it's like, with his speed, you want him outside if you can. So that might be it as well. Yeah. The only other changes here on the defensive of special teams, parts of the ball that I have noticed. Chris Jenkins gets a promotion. J.2Felley on the initial depth chart was listed as a second stringer. And they also had a nose tackle on the initial depth chart.

Starting point is 00:09:04 They no longer have nose tackle listed as a position here, period. And then as far as the specialists go, Chase Brown promoted from second string kickoff returner to first string kickoff returner between August 5th and today, Trayvion Williams, switches spots with him. And Jermaine Burton makes an appearance here on the punt return unit where he previously did not. Those are the intricacies of the depth chart explained. Coming up next, let's dive into some of the questions that we would like to see the Cincinnati Bengals answer as a regular season is ready to get going. And there's a few of them. And they can get these answers to us early in

Starting point is 00:09:42 the season. We'll go there coming up next. You've heard us talk a lot about Fandall. Well, Fandall is America's number one sports book. And right now we have something a bit different for you, something that you have to take advantage of. And it's because now through September 22nd, all Fandall customers can bet $5 and get a three-week free trial of NFL Sunday ticket from YouTube and YouTube TV. That's right. Three weeks free with NFL Sunday ticket from YouTube and YouTube TV. All you have to do is bet $5 on Fandall can be for new customers, existing customers,

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Starting point is 00:10:54 Charlie Jones. So for those of you not watching on YouTube that did not have the visual aid, just wanted to clarify that note before we dive into the biggest questions. We're looking for the Cincinnati Bengals to answer to start the season. And James, let's exclude Joe and Jamar for this conversation. We've talked about those a ton if you're interested in our questions around Joe Burrow and Jamar Chase and those sorts of things, check like any episode for the last seven days, essentially, where we're still waiting to see if Jamar's going to show up for practice on Wednesday, if they're going to get the deal done.

Starting point is 00:11:23 Joe Burrow, can he sustain what we saw from him in training camp? All these things. Are we worried about the risk? We've answered those questions. So what else is on the top of your mind when you're thinking about what questions of Bengals have to answer to get back to how we felt about them around the San Francisco and Buffalo games last year? We were like, oh, yeah, this is still a really good football team.

Starting point is 00:11:45 Yeah, hopefully their ceiling is past that, right? And that's just how they start this year. We haven't seen them start that way. which is much easier said than done, but maybe they can. And if they can, if they do, a big part of it, I think, is going to be these new phases, these new skill players that are either in new roles where they're relying on them from Andre Yosevaas as a starter on the depth chart to Zach Moss as a starter on the depth chart, Chase Brown behind him, three guys you're really, really relying on.

Starting point is 00:12:15 Oh, and Mike Gassicki as well. How do these skill guys, these new skill guys, and I get it, Andre and Charlie, have been here and they're entering year two, but they're new in their role. How do they fit? How does the puzzle come together? Is it going to be this awesome, versatile chessboard where you just give Joe Burrell all of these different weapons that they can put in different spots? Or is Andre just the dude that's going to play 80% of the snaps in the slot? And that's that. Or is it going to be the Mike Gassicki show in the slot? And it'll be 50% Mike and 50% off. Andre. Does Charlie Jones get in there? I think it's something that we'll get an answer to over the

Starting point is 00:12:57 next month. Maybe not one game. I don't think we'll know Sunday evening when we're doing our postgame show. But that is what I'm looking for, is the workload for the running backs, how they fit. And same thing goes for this wide receiver room, which I include Mike Gassikian, because obviously he's going to be a huge part of the passing game. Yeah, finding out how exactly they plan to deploy those weapons with the changes they have on the offensive coaching staff, with Dan Pitcher's promotion, how his influence on the offense will integrate a depth chart of skill players that really is something that you could see contributions up and down the depth chart, even when you get past the stars of the team.

Starting point is 00:13:40 And then you add to that the addition of the passing game coordinator, Justin Ruscatti, and his potential influence coming to the team. and combine that with the intention that we've seen from this team in the offseason for the last two years, before Joe Burroughs, calf injury and this year, to get him on the move a little bit more, to get him under center a little bit more, to run more of the offense outside of the shotgun only. When you combine all of those elements with a depth chart that we think is quite versatile at those skill positions, where Chase Brown and Zach Moss have been described as interchangeable by head coach Zach Taylor. and they're going to have to figure out really where those strengths and weaknesses are,

Starting point is 00:14:21 where they delineate the roles for those two guys when they think they can both do a little bit of everything. And you go along to the slot and how they're going to use the five tight ends on the roster, seeing how all the personnel comes together with the scheme, evolution, or changes, or the steps we thought they would take last year or however you want to phrase it come together, that will be something that I think we'll get an idea for, early in the season, but obviously with all of these things, it will be evolution over the course of the year, how these guys get used if somebody steps up and starts to take over a job,

Starting point is 00:14:57 gets an opportunity to start one week and then runs with it. Those sorts of things always can happen. And we also know that this is a coaching staff that is very game plan opponent dependent on the offensive side of the ball. But one thing that we should notice right away is the implementation of the under center work that we've seen from then the last two off seasons and how much we see that pre-snap motion, the motion at the snap,

Starting point is 00:15:23 a huge uptick for the Bengals this preseason and that could continue into the regular season as well. And so those are some answers that we could get pretty early on. Yeah, I agree. The scheme part, they tie perfectly together because if Andre Yoseva shows

Starting point is 00:15:39 he can be your Tyler Boyd or your Marvin Jones or your insert whatever comp you want to make because I've heard a bunch of them, whether it's the late round Marvin Jones or the big slot, Tyler Boyd, and hopefully it's a mixture of both, right? And it's the best of both worlds. I think that changes things. As would if Andre, and he had a couple drops at the end of camp, I still think he's been pretty steady, has the trust of the staff and certainly of Joe Burrow, but something to pay attention to because I think the offense looks different. If it's Charlie Jones, like a traditional slot,

Starting point is 00:16:16 and traditional build at slot in there, or if you're kicking Chase in there more often, or if Jermaine Burton suddenly emerges, but it doesn't feel like that's going to happen this week, certainly, and early in the season. And so you combine that with how often are they wanting to go under center, knowing that they have a guy in Chase Brown, who I think is very comfortable rushing, certainly shotgun,

Starting point is 00:16:42 but under center as well. and then you have a guy in Zach Moss who has thrived in the shotgun runs. And I think that's a big reason why they brought him in listed his first on the depth chart. I think you'll see some of it, Jake. I don't think it's going to be a ton. I still think that they're going to be that team that is in shotgun a lot. Not always because we've seen it a lot in camp, especially early on. I think they wanted to get Joe comfortable there.

Starting point is 00:17:10 And it's just having that dynamic to go to in the middle of the third quarter at Arrowhead when you need to lean on it, that would be nice. And that's something that they haven't had or to start the game at Arrowhead or to start the game against Baltimore. And so hopefully it is effective enough and they're confident enough in the under center game to go to it when they need it. Yeah, I think that's part of it is the comfortability and the experience in it. And it's not that they have to major in it, right?

Starting point is 00:17:38 It's not going to be the dominant set for this offense. But can they get to it when they want? to get to it and can they get effective results from it, both on the ground and in the play-action passing game, because you listen to national media or non-Bengal specific podcast, talk about Joe Burrow, a constant criticism that you often hear is he's got to be more comfortable with the easy buttons. For other quarterbacks, the easy buttons are some of the play action stuff, but if he doesn't want to turn his back to the line of scrimmage, this narrative has really taken off, that that is something that is ineffective and something that Joe Burrough is uncomfortable with.

Starting point is 00:18:14 And the results kind of bear that out statistically. Like he is not one of the quarterbacks that has benefited massively from the undercenter play action game. So if you can change that, and obviously last year a huge anomaly in the sense because they, I think, had eight total snaps of under center Joe Burrow play action last year. Because he couldn't do it for the first five weeks of the season. They didn't really get to it until the middle of the season when they got hot. But if they can take that offense, like I said, referring to this part of the season last year again and get those results. over the course of this entire season, then you're feeling great about the offense

Starting point is 00:18:48 because that San Francisco game last year was so encouraging for the outlook we had for this team the rest of the way. Yeah, I mean, we were like, oh, they're back. They're legit contenders, and everything's back, even though they have flaws, they could win at all. I mean, that was certainly the vibe after what they did to San Francisco where they controlled the entire game. So that's definitely a factor.

Starting point is 00:19:13 I think there's at least one more question on the offense that we can get to. Plus, we need to hit on the defense because there are plenty of questions there. We will do that in much more coming up next. Passion, drive, and patience. The formula for winning championships is also what keeps your ride or die alive. eBay Motors has everything you need to maintain your vehicle and level it up. That peak performance from superchargers, roof racks, exhaust kits, LED, headlights, and more. Whether you're into speed, power, or style, eBay Motors has your cover.

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Starting point is 00:20:08 Eligible items only. Exclusions apply. eBay guaranteed fit only available to U.S. customers. You're right. At least one more question on the offensive side of the ball. Notice we haven't talked about the offensive line very much in the lead up to the season. And I'm not sure if this is what your question was. But I do think I'm interested to see how this offensive line performs early in the season. If we see a step from Cordell Volson at left guard where he is now entrenched and getting close to extension time in terms of his career trajectory, and then what's going on in right tackle on the right side. with Trent Brown and where we get a Marius Mims involved. Those are some questions on the offensive line. Just seeing how they gel, it's not as big of a question as it's been in the past, but it's still one that's in the back of my mind just because of what the history has been

Starting point is 00:20:56 for Joe Burrow in Cincinnati. Yeah, of course. That's a huge question, literally and figuratively. You know, literally because you have some huge guys that you're banking on. Orlando Brown is hoping to bounce back after a year, but I think he wasn't happy with how he performed. And he played through a growing injury, but he wants to play at a much higher level this year.

Starting point is 00:21:19 Cordell Volson, you mentioned it, has a lot on the line, really could play himself into an extension with a good year this year. Ted Caris, steady, steady, steady, sign that extension, but you still want to see him continue to do what he did, especially middle and end of last year. I felt like he was able to get it done. And then the right side, I think it's two question marks. And it's question marks, one for Alex Kappa,

Starting point is 00:21:44 thought he had an up and down camp, was really dealing with BJ Hill a lot. And that was a tough matchup for him. But who knows? Maybe that makes him that much better. But I do think he was unsatisfied, much like Orlando, with an up and down in 2023.

Starting point is 00:21:58 So this is a chance for him to bounce back. And then obviously the big question mark at right tackle. And I don't think it's a, like, I think Trent Brown should be a good right tackle, and I'm confident in that. but I haven't really seen it yet. And so it's one of those things where I look at all the metrics from last year and how he's played throughout his career and it's an ideal fit.

Starting point is 00:22:21 But it's not like he took a ton of reps in training camp. Amarius Mims not starting this week. We know that. So Trent Brown, that's the question mark for me. And then if he does play to high level, how long does he keep that starting job because of health or otherwise? I think that's the other question mark at right tackle with Amarius Mims. The camp he had, the preseason he got off to that start.

Starting point is 00:22:43 I think if he stays healthy, there's a chance he just wins that starting job outright. And instead now we're kind of in limbo, I think, at right tackle a bit. And I think unfairly there's an injury prone label on Amarious Vins early in his career. I get it. He was hurt last year. He got hurt in training camp, but let's give the guy a little bit more of a chance before we slap that label on him. Meanwhile, Trent Brown, Orlando Brown is your tackles.

Starting point is 00:23:06 Are two very, very large humans, like you said, James. potentially both vulnerable to the same kind of pass rushers and speed. And so where they lose might be very quickly at times when they don't time up a snap count as well as the opposing defensive end gets a really good jump and can get around the edge before they can get into their pass sets. That's where you have a little bit of concern about both of those guys. We'll see how that plays out early in the season. I'm not tremendously worried about the edge rushers of Bengals are facing to start the year

Starting point is 00:23:39 for the most part. So it's not like the same kind of gauntlet that they'll get later in the year when they get into their AFC North schedule. So that is one thing I think going in their favor. Chris Jones, of course, in week two with Kansas City, but not a ton of premier edge rushers early in the season for the Bengals.

Starting point is 00:23:57 I also have some questions about how the Bengals will use their tight ends, but we'll find out about that pretty quickly and how much 12 personnel they used. They kept five tight ends for the first time that we can remember. and so is there a plan to use those guys more? That's a question that we'll probably get some answers to early on as well.

Starting point is 00:24:15 But a bigger question on the defensive side of the ball is how they stand up against opposing running games. Because while this is a defense and Lou Aniromo has made clear his desire to be a good passing defense and get after the passer and have solid players in the secondary with good communication, how far can that communication go in helping the Bengals defend the run? because as Mike Santagana, shout out Mike Santagena, friend of the show, has pointed out on Twitter in a conversation today, your pass rush on third and two is a lot different from your pass rush on third and eight. So getting to those third and eight,

Starting point is 00:24:48 so let your past defense that you've made go to work is relying on your run defense on early down sometimes. And without DJ Reeder, obviously, you've got a new look defense up front that we'll need to get it done. Yeah, it's the biggest question of the, the team. I mean, it's one thing to be like, oh, well, Trump Brown's dealt with injuries. Yeah, but there's a track record here of him being healthy, and when he is healthy, he's playing at a pretty high level. I would say that about DJ Reader, right?

Starting point is 00:25:21 Now, a better version, but you lose that. And there's just this gaping hole. There's no obvious guy that they brought in that's going to fill that void. And it might not matter. Maybe the past rush is good enough. Maybe the linebackers pick up some of the slack. Maybe they're so good in the secondary that everything comes together. And maybe the offense is dropping 30 plus, so you can't run it on them all day. But there's a question there. And so B.J. Hill, I think, will be the nose tackle, even though he's not listed that way.

Starting point is 00:25:54 We'll play that role some. And then after that, I think you're going to be banking on a variety of guys. And we'll see how it works. Obviously, McKinley Jackson on injured reserve, going to miss at least four games. It's a bummer because you were hoping that he would be one of these rookies that was trending up coming into this week and that you felt pretty darn good about. Much like Chris Jenkins, how he just get better and better each week, I was hoping McKinley Jackson would have that type of ascension, even maybe more so because it's that nose tackle body that you're looking for. So we'll see. But I think it is the biggest question on the team.

Starting point is 00:26:32 and you better believe looking ahead to Sunday, I'm sure the Patriots are thinking all about how they're going to get the ball to Ramandre Stevenson and get the ball to their running backs in hopes of slowing the game down, keeping the ball out of Burroughs' hands. I mean, when you have the offense that the Patriots have, I think that's your only shot.

Starting point is 00:26:52 So the Bengals should be tested here early in the season in their run defense. And the interesting thing to me is what DJ Reader allowed them to do was to continue to play nickel quite often. and still be decent defending the run when DJ was on the field. Obviously, everyone's seen the DJ Reader on-off splits, and this year it's going to be a permanent off-split for this Bengals defense in defending the run.

Starting point is 00:27:12 So it needs to be better than it was the last couple of years when DJ Reader was not on the field, and it's going to have to look different too. I don't know if the Bengals will continue to be able to live with DJ Reader taking a bunch of stress off of the back seven or if they'll need to go a little bit heavier at times. We saw them try to compensate for DJ Reader's absence, of course, down the stretch last year.

Starting point is 00:27:34 I'm sure some of those tactics have some good lessons learned for Lou Anarumo and this defensive staff, but they went heavy, of course, in the secondary with, well, at safety, not in the secondary. They have the normal number of secondary players with 10 of them, but heavy at safety, so they'll have to find roles for those guys. And a lot of pressure, I think, on this defensive front that was banged up. They lost a couple of defensive ends for short term and for long term in Miles Murphy and Cam Sample in the preseason.

Starting point is 00:28:04 We'll see if KJ. Henry can contribute, if Cedric Johnson can contribute, how much they're going to rely on Sam Hubbard, Trey Hendrickson, and Joseph Osai early in the year. And then, like we've talked about, these questions facing the defensive interior and how those guys perform and how they're used, how they line up,

Starting point is 00:28:22 how they choose to try to stop the run, will be some interesting approach-based questions that we get answers to, I think, pretty early in the season. Yep. it's it's going to need to be an all hands-on deck type of thing and who knows like these guys have heard it all offseason you know it like b jills heard it sheldon rancans has heard it and and you go on down the list and i'm pretty high on chris jenkins and so maybe he just comes in and

Starting point is 00:28:48 can help them and give them the the boost that they need but on those real those short yardage downs when you need the beef do they have the beef do they have enough sand in their pocket whatever you want to say, whatever phrase you want to use, I think teams, I mean, every week are going to test them. And they have a lot of these teams that they're facing earlier, have a solid running game outside of a couple teams, but have a solid running game, at least on paper. So we'll see.

Starting point is 00:29:18 We'll see if they can hold up. But that's a huge question. I think that Dax kind of answered some of those questions. Certainly the safety room you feel much more confident in, but the one question the pass rush should be better, but the one question is that that run defense. And by the way, we didn't see much of Sam Hubbard throughout training camp.

Starting point is 00:29:37 He's a huge part of it. And I still wonder, I still wonder if moving him inside at times would make sense, especially with Miles Murphy now out. But we'll see. We'll see if they do that at all this year. Well, and even if they do, that's more of a pass rush thing to me.

Starting point is 00:29:54 You don't want to get smaller necessarily by moving Sam Hubbard. inside on rushing downs. And he's so good at defending the edge and run defense, but it will be interesting to see if they get to that this year, because it is something that at some point in the off season, we thought they were more open to and than they have been in years fast. Sure, but yeah, but I just mean if you do that, then maybe you go BJ Hill and Chris Jenkins and they're fresher that way or whatever rotation. It's tough because I don't think anybody's expecting anything out of Zach Carter, and I don't mean that to be mean to Zach. But it's almost like, except maybe the Bengals defense, right?

Starting point is 00:30:32 They may be thinking that he's going to contribute. But it's building around that almost in my mind and figuring out a way if he doesn't give you much on how to piece it together. They still feel three deep at defensive tackle. Yeah. Like it's not the rosiest picture there. And they will need to overcome that early in the season. And whether or not they do, I think, will have a pretty big impact on this defense. And maybe this communication stuff that the coaching staff keeps talking about, the players

Starting point is 00:31:04 keeps talking about with the return of Von Bell goes a longer way than we think it might in covering up some of these issues. But we will get these answers, like I said, early in the season. I think that we're pretty optimistic about the Cincinnati Bengals offense this year, even though we spend a lot of time talking about how it's going to look and the offensive line because you can't talk about a Cincinnati Bengals season without talking about the offensive line. But the biggest question, I agree with you, James, is that defensive.

Starting point is 00:31:28 side of the ball and if they can hold up their end of the bargain because there's a fair question last year that is even if Joe Burrow was healthy to finish the season could the defense have done enough to make them a viable playoff contender? We'll never know the answer to that question, of course, with Joe Burroughs injury. But I don't want to be facing that question again this year where the offense is awesome and the defense just isn't good enough to make you feel great about them in the playoffs where they've transformed, honestly, from average units to really good units in the past and gotten some of their best performances when it comes to playoff football. But different roster now than it was the last time the Bengals were in the playoffs, of course,

Starting point is 00:32:07 a couple of years of turnover there. And so those questions will be very interesting to answer. Unfortunately, we didn't have time to talk about any of the specialists, James, but that is going to do it for this episode of the Locked-on Bengals podcast. Coming up next time, we've got crossover Thursday. It's already that time. we have our first crossover of the year leading into the Cincinnati Bengals season premiere. Until then, thanks for listening to this episode of the Lockdown Bengals podcast, Hootay, and have a good.

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